• New world order takes shape. The shakeup in container shipping alliances keeps shaking. The Alliance (of ONE, Yang Ming, and HMM) will rebrand as the Premier Alliance. MSC will use its heft — 853 ships, of 6.1m teu, or nearly 20% of global capacity — to go it alone on east-west routes from February and share slots with the Premier Alliance on Asia-Europe trades. MSC and Maersk said at the start of the year they would end the 2M alliance. Hapag-Lloyd also parted ways with The Alliance and needed a new dance partner. It found one in Maersk: their Gemini Cooperation starts next year. The Ocean Alliance (CMA CGM, Cosco, and Evergreen) continues, albeit on somewhat shaky ground. It’s nearly a decade since the four weddings and a funeral that set the status quo for container shipping. Now the new world order is starting to take shape. We noted some months ago that the new world order leaves the Premier Alliance the smallest of the bunch. Pressure on it will be felt most keenly on ONE, its biggest player. Might ONE seek bigger, stronger partners? One wonders.

• MSC sets out solo offer as alliances reconfigure. Starting in February next year, the container shipping giant will no longer be part of any alliance on the east-west trades. In addition to its massive fleet, MSC has also secured access to extra capacity on the Asia-Europe trade through a slot-sharing agreement with Ocean Network Express, HMM, and Yang Ming. The latter three are forming the new Premier Alliance with the departure of Hapag-Lloyd early next year.

• Typhoon aftermath in China drives global port congestion to the highest level outside pandemic. Serious delays at major Chinese container ports affected by extreme weather last week have exacerbated global congestion. Increasing congestion has yet to stop freight rates from falling. The industry is closely monitoring how impending port strikes on the US east and Gulf coasts will shape the market trends.

• Biden warned by 177 US trade groups on ‘devastating’ port strike risk. Dockworkers union ILA now says October strike ‘is more likely’. There are just two weeks to go before a major US port strike, and the two sides are not even at the negotiating table. A coalition of 177 US trade associations urged the Biden administration to help, but the ILA opposes federal involvement. US retailers are ‘extremely’ worried as US port strike deadline nears. Accelerated imports won’t be enough to offset strike fallout, warns National Retail Federation.

• Food exporters face major fallout if US dockworkers strike. East and Gulf coast ports handle almost half of US containerised agricultural exports. US exporters of containerised agricultural products have options to use rail to other ports in the event of a strike at east and Gulf coast terminals. But they would be constrained by both transport capacity and higher ocean shipping costs.

• Container lines (CMA CGM and Hapag-Lloyd) roll out surcharges as US port strike looms.

• Over half of cargo owners blame box carriers for holding back digitalisation, survey finds. A survey of cargo owners found 54% blamed shipowners for blocking the digital transition. Staff fearing for their jobs make up a big cohort of those opposed to new technology.

• Cosco Shipping’s auto transport JV to launch new South America route. New monthly service will cut voyage times from Shanghai to Chancay (Peru) to 25 days. Cosco holds exclusive rights at the Chancay terminal with a $3.5bn investment.

• CMA CGM agrees to buy 48% of Santos Brasil and has its eye on more. The French container giant will seek to purchase all of Santos Brasil at the same price per share in the future. French shipping giant CMA CGM has agreed to buy 47.6% of port terminal operator Santos Brasil for $1.2bn and will launch a takeover bid for the remaining stake later in the year.

• Ningbo-Zhoushan to add 2m teu capacity with new $922m container terminal. Terminal will have two berths capable of accommodating 24,000 teu ultra-large containerships, with hydraulic structures designed for 32,000 teu vessels to anticipate future ship types. Construction is set to begin in October 2025, with completion and commissioning planned for December 2027. Full capacity is expected to be reached by December 2030.

• Gemini carriers join MSC in offering Red Sea contingency plan. New carrier alliance looks to allay shipper uncertainties ahead of the February 2025 launch. Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd announce revamped Gemini network to customers, including two routing options dependent on Red Sea developments.

• MSC plans to develop new box terminal at Aarhus angers APMT. MSC’s port operating subsidiary, Terminal Investment Ltd (TIL), has signed a deal with the port authority of Aarhus to develop a new container terminal at Denmark’s largest port.

• Effective October 21, 2024, the CBSA Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM) system will become the primary platform for importers and trade chain partners (TCPs) to manage their customs-related duties and taxes owed to the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). This new system aims to streamline and modernize the process of accounting for goods, ensuring greater efficiency and accuracy in the collection and reporting of revenue. For more information, you can consult our member Canada: Sealion Cargo.

• Drewry launches new index for intra-Asia trade. Index recognises growing prominence of regional trade. The inaugural index reading shows weakening average spot rates on most intra-Asia container trade lanes on softening regional demand.

• Amazon ordered its employees to return to the office five days a week, the toughest such edict yet among America’s big tech firms. Staff had been required to turn up three days a week. An option of working anywhere for four months a year has also been scrapped.

• Unions in Germany reacted furiously to Volkswagen’s admission that a “comprehensive restructuring” meant it may have to close factories in the country for the first time in its 87-year history. Along with its European rivals, the German carmaker has been hit by competition from cheaper Chinese-made electric vehicles and it also faces reduced demand for its cars in China, its most profitable market.

• Fish sleep with their eyes open.

• The average life expectancy of dinosaurs varied between 75 and 300 years.

Enjoy the rest of the week!